Here’s a new way for gentlemen to dress up suede bucks, oxfords and even patent tux shoes: statement laces.

Bright colored strings are emerging as a way for men to accessorize, from the well-heeled models at Dunhill’s Spring 2011 runway show to preppy menswear labels such as Paul Smith, where certain shoes are sold with bright colored laces already tied up (with a neutral-colored spare included in the box for the faint of heart).

This clever trick has been employed by dandies—especially in London, Milan, Paris and Tokyo—for years. However, Derrick Miller, founder of the Manhattan-based, London-bred shoe label Barker Black, says that stateside, the trend may be an extension of the loud laces found on funky sneakers—apparently street style is sneaking up on Savile Row.

Although the concept feels especially modern now (little details are the new bling), there is evidence that decorative laces go back centuries, says Elizabeth Semmelhack, senior curator of The Bata Shoe Museum in Toronto. Heeled shoes were introduced in the late 16th century and by the 17th, most upper class men were wearing them with colorful bows and ribbons. “They were used to secure the shoe to the foot and could be quite colorful in their own right,” she says. Some men went one step further, Ms. Semmelhack says, and attached large colorful bows known as shoe “roses” over the ribbons.

History aside, there’s no doubt the simple act of pairing fire-engine red or royal purple shoelaces with a pair of brown wingtips provides lots of punch for very little effort—like wearing wacky socks with a pair of serious shoes and your grey flannels. The look works best with chestnut kicks rather than black, where the contrast can be jarring. Beginners may want to start with a more muted hue, but if you’re feeling adventurous, go brighter, neon even. Just be sure laces are your one and only statement, and give your other preferred pieces of flair—argyles, pocket squares, suspenders—a well-deserved rest.

—Ray A. Smith

Article from WSJ

Top image: Colored laces at Dunhill’s Spring 2011 runway show.

Custom motorcycles are nothing new in today’s climate of individuality, but niche motorcycle builder, Destino Custom Garage has come up with something a little different.

It launched its new flagship motorcycle the Destino Samurai at the recent Australian Motorcycle Expo (Sydney, November 2011) and sold out within the first week.

How?

Destino limits production to 4 bikes per year, and even if you want one, you’ll have to wait for an invitation because the Destino Samurai bike is available for purchase “by invitation only”.

Are you worthy?

Swiss brand Victorinox, producers of the world famous pocket knives, introduces its new fragrance range in an inventive way via a 360° interactive video. Shot in a Swiss lake, in less than one minute the video gives you a panoramic experience of plunging into a fresh mountain lake for a refreshing dip.

The video experience triggers the feeling of well-being and freshness exemplified by Victorinox’s men’s fragrances, which captures the essence of Switzerland: the beauty, freedom and freshness of snow capped mountains, majestic glaciers, flowering meadows and glistening lakes.

Take a swim yourself and enjoy a revitalizing dip, the Swiss way of freshness.

GiftVault.com is a new online luxury boutique where you can exchange gift ideas, post stories about your favourite luxury items, and share your perfect wishlist on your profile page.

Showcasing exceptional and exclusive ranges of products hand-picked by partners Lee Greenberg and Violetta Gruosi, GiftVault.com offers a unique perspective on the luxury goods market.

Gifts range from fabulous hand-crafted board games to exquisite pens, cigar humidors for him and beautiful lingerie, leather goods & jewellery for her. There are also soft monogrammed bathrobes, mini trees made entirely of sweets and miniature versions of cars of the moment. For the home there is Christofle silverware, Missoni soft furnishings, beautiful candles, coffee-table books and exclusive art and photography.

GiftVault prides itself on offering its members an interactive experience on its own social network, where you can subscribe to one another, send messages and chat as you find the ultimate gift! In addition there is also an easy-to-use app where you can shop directly from Facebook, and post your favourite products to your wall, or send virtual gifts to your friends!

GiftVault.com offers same day delivery, personal shopping and bespoke services.

The Sun-Drop Diamond found in South Africa is a giant pear-shaped yellow gem weighing 110.3 carats and has sold for 10 million Swiss francs ($10.7 million) at auction, beating previous records for a jewel of this type.

The unidentified telephone bidder paid 11.28 million francs for the gem, putting it within the 10.2 million to 14 million francs range Sotheby’s had estimated before the sale.

“It’s a record for a yellow diamond at auction,” said David Bennett, the head of Sotheby’s jewellery division.

He said it was the eighth-most expensive diamond ever sold at auction.

Some had expected the auction’s headline piece to finish higher after Sotheby’s sold a 24.78 carat fancy intense pink diamond for a record-breaking $US46 million ($45.32 million) last year.

“When it gets to this price there are only half a dozen people who can actually participate,” said Mourad Hatik, a Geneva jewel trader.

“If they decide they already have a similar stone, then the price doesn’t go up.”

Still, exceptional gems such as the Sun-Drop will always attract bidders, he said.

“There is very little quality to buy.”

The Sun-Drop, which was found in South Africa last year, was put up for sale by New York-based company Cora International.

Gemologists had rated it as fancy, vivid yellow – the highest possible colour grading.

Yellow diamonds are created by nitrogen impurities being trapped within carbon molecules and hardening over the course of millions of years.

Other lots at the $US70 million sale in Geneva’s Beau-Rivage hotel included a white cushion-shaped diamond weighing 38.88 carats that sold for almost $US7 million, including commission.

A 12.01-carat emerald from Colombia’s Muzo mine sold for $US1.4 million, while a blue diamond ring was snapped up for $US4.3 million.

However, several precious jewels – including an elaborate gold and diamond peace dove brooch, a blue diamond ring estimated at more than $US7.5 million, and a suite of imperial jewels – failed to find buyers.

The set, comprising a necklace, brooch and pair of earrings, was given by the Ottoman Empire’s Sultan Abdul Hamid II to the wife of the Khedive of Egypt in the late 19th century.

Sotheby’s said some of the gems might have been part of a peace offering given by Russian Tsar Peter the Great’s wife Catherine to Ottoman Sultan Ahmed II in 1711, but a bid of $US9.3 million wasn’t enough.

Image by Reuters.

Angel & Weightman is a London based specialist provider of anti ageing treatments. The company previously developed specialist skin treatments for private clients, which have included some of the wealthiest people on earth. They developed a following within society circles because all their treatments were made to order for clients. They have continued this tradition with only limited formulations made available to the public.

Treatments range on average between US$129 and US$1000. The treatments are for the most discriminating of clients and are available by special order via their website Angel & Weightman.

 ’A’ list Celebrities, have reportedly been spending as much as $10 000 on the new anti aging cream called The Great Work (pictured above) which is named after the ancient alchemical process.

Many detractors have said that such an extravagant price for such a product when so many people are struggling is in bad taste but the company states that it gives away up to 30% of sales to help fund projects that help vulnerable children globally.

In spite of the cost, and the global economic downturn, sales have sky rocketed. Ultra rich buyers from China, the UAE, Russia and the USA have been the main driver of sales of the cream and reportedly ’A’ list celebrities including Madonna, Jenifer Aniston and Jenifer Lopez have all bought the cream.

The makers claim the cream reduces wrinkles and smooths the skin by using a combination of stem cell extracts, enzymes, rare plant extracts, monatomic gold and other rare minerals, which leave the user with younger looking skin.

Jasmine Mildrew, head of client sales at Angel & Weightman commented, ” We have been privately making custom skincare for some of the wealthiest and most powerful people in the world. They have always demanded the very best and our work is focused entirely on results.

The Great Work is available by special order on the Angel & Weightman website. The cost is US$9799.99 for a three month supply.

A pop-up boutique has launched at the Sanderson Hotel in London.  Luna & Curious is a group who run exclusive boutiques. They will showcase finely rendered British design objects at the iconic central Sanderson London hotel starting this October 2011 and run for at least 6 months.

The pop-up location will showcase a selection of new British designers that have produced innovative homewares, jewelry, art, accessories and much more. The products were chosen by Luna & Curious in order to highlight respect for traditional British processes and manufactures.

Examples of items include:

- English fine bone china from welovekaoru and Polly George, who specialize in using increasingly rare manufacturing traditions in the ceramic industry.

- Jewelry by Rheanna Lingham which uses exotic materials to create statement pieces – hand-made at her studio in Kent, feathers are hand-dyed and intricately made into necklaces, and iridescent green beetle wings are mesmerizing as earrings and necklaces.

Luna & Curious was established in 2006 with a popular location in East London, and the new Sanderson store aims to be a similarly successful outpost for passer-bys and hotel guests in central London. The Sanderson boutique will be open daily from 11am until 7pm.

Wine-Searcher is a search engine of over 29,698 wine stores. The site also offers a wealth of information about wine. Whether you are a connoisseur, merchant or winery this website is great for locating a favourite wine or a hard to find wine.

You can search for:
• Recommended wines
• Wines by region
• The top 100 wines searched for last month
• Valuing wines
• Buying and selling wines, background information

If you sign up for their Pro Version subscription it will get you a wider range of pricing sources and costs USD$39.00 per year. Having access to the full results will get you additional savings on almost every wine purchase.

Why hire a full-time personal assistant or even part-time help when you can have an hourly on-call service that is just a phone call away?

Purveyors of Time Concierge is a world-class, personal assisting company providing lifestyle management services to high-net-worth individuals counting many celebrities amongst their clients . Jeannette Jones, Founder and CEO, says “Living in Los Angeles, we saw firsthand the inherent need for a service that would cater to the successful and busy lifestyles of all kinds of affluent people, and we moved to fill that need.”

Purveyors of Time’s concierge staff and lifestyle experts are some of the most experienced in the hospitality industry. All staff are dedicated to meeting high standards of style, service, and personal attentiveness ensuring that your needs are met with the quality you expect. The entire organization and coterie of experts are always at your disposal.

“Whether our client needs us to fly to Tuscany, Italy, to personally procure a bottle of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano or our client needs us to go to his loft to prepare it for his arrival in Los Angeles, no request is too extreme,” says Jones. “In today’s economy, everyone wants value for their hard-earned dollars.” Purveyors of Time brings both competitive pricing and stellar service to all their clients.

So again I ask you – Why hire a full-time personal assistant or even part-time help when you can have an hourly on-call service that is just a phone call away?